More and more Denton County residents are seeing the benefits of public transportation as an alternative commute into downtown Dallas. As gas prices have teetered near $4.00 a gallon, DCTA has experienced record ridership on its Commuter Express service which runs between Denton, Lewisville and the Dallas Central Business District.

In June, DCTA’s Commuter Express carried 8,018 passengers. This broke a previous record set in April of this year and is 53% more passengers than carried in June of last year (5,235). This trend of record ridership has resulted in a year-to-date increase of 38%. This record is even more impressive considering that a large share of DCTA’s daily ridership is typically made up of students commuting on the reverse trips into Denton for classes at the University of North Texas and Texas Woman’s University, which are both on summer break.

Denton County residents are likely trying Commuter Express because of the cost savings. On average, Denton County commuters are now spending over $800 a month traveling into downtown Dallas in their personal automobiles. The $85 monthly pass or $800 annual pass on Commuter Express offers tremendous savings.

“Commuter Express is a great alternative commute into downtown Dallas. Our passengers not only benefit from a cost savings, but also they save time and stress,” stated John Hedrick, DCTA president. “Because we utilize the HOV lanes, our customers spend less time sitting in traffic on the heavily congested I-35E.”

Commuter Express was launched in May 2006 in cooperation with Dallas Area Rapid Transit as a precursor to DCTA’s regional rail service. Commuter Express currently offers passengers three express coach trips to downtown Dallas from park & ride locations in Denton and Lewisville. Three reverse trips from downtown Dallas stop at Dallas Area Rapid Transit’s North Carrollton Transit Center, the Lewisville Park and Ride, Texas Woman’s University, the University of North Texas and downtown Denton.

For more information about DCTA and its services, please call John Hedrick at 972-221-4600